Spags' plan for more pressure was pure genius

Andy Mills/The Star-LedgerThe best part of Osi's sacks always seem to be the pics of him looking down on the QB afterward.

I've never been inside Steve Spagnuolo's head, but I think I know what was going on in there last week:

"Hmmm, Donovan McNabb got way too much time against the Lions and torched their secondary on the way to 56 points. That means we have to get to McNabb before he can have a chance to plant and throw."

I know, we were all thinking the same thing. But here's the difference between the hamster operating the wheels in our head and the one in Spags' cranium: Whereas you and I probably thought, "Well, they should just commit another guy to the box and the blitz," Spags came up with a different scheme:

"I'll add a guy to the secondary."

How many times do we talk about the pass rush and the secondary working together? When one plays out of its mind, the other reaps the rewards and vice versa.

I'm guessing Spags thought the same thing and realized he had the horses up front to do the pass rushing, so if he could just give the secondary help to buy an extra half second, the front four would finish. You see, the Giants played much more dime defense (six DBs) last night than they did in the first couple of games when they ran mostly nickel (five DBs) in passing situations. And last night's changes allowed for a few coverage sacks that helped contribute toward an NFL record 12.

Plus, as much as people were trying to downplay how Spags' familiarity with McNabb and his former employers would help the Giants, it undoubtedly did. I know Spags is well aware that McNabb holds the ball longer than any other QB in the league. McNabb is real proud of his low INT numbers (Remember, he took a shot at gunslinger Brett Favre earlier this year), but they're only low because he'd often rather wait that extra half second than throw into coverage. Spags had to know another DB would make McNabb hold it a hair longer and that would be a fatal move because Osi Umenyiora would be in his back pocket by then.

Make no mistake, the sacks were due to excellent play by the front four in 1-on-1 matchups. But don't discredit Spags' scheme and his smarts.

GAME BALLS
*Spags. After turning this defense around, he's only one miracle away from qualifying for sainthood.

*Umenyiora. He played okay.

*So did Tuck, Strahan and Kiwi. If they're still hungry, lunch is on me.

*LB Antonio Pierce. The general is backing up his horn now.

*CB Aaron Ross. Tom Coughlin said today Ross will make some mistakes, "but he's going to make those errors from the aggressive side." In other words, he's the anti-Corey Webster, who was supposed to be the ball hawk around these parts.

*K Lawrence Tynes. Coughlin said he didn't "remember ever being around a missed extra point." Well, it was a night of records and firsts, so why not add this one to the list?

*The Eagles WR corps. Or maybe we should pin the blame on coach Andy Reid and the front office. I mean, I don't get it. They go out and get T.O. because they know they need a game-breaking receiver. Then, they dump him because of his mouth, which is fine by me. I get that part. But then, they go right back to simply trying to get by with a bunch of mediocre targets for McNabb? Bad call.

*Eagles LT Winston Justice. Again, maybe the fault lies with Reid for not giving him help.

ODDS AND (TIGHT) ENDS
*Last week, I blogged that Michael Strahan was ready to bust out. Man, I'm wishing I would have written "Osi" instead of "Michael" and "Umenyiora" in lieu of Strahan.

*S Michael Johnson was in for one series and had two tackles. It's pretty clear he can hit.

*Maybe I'm crazy, but I think this offense is missing WR Steve Smith. I thought he'd be crossing the 200-yard mark by now. Coughlin said Smith is "still in a holding pattern," which means don't expect to see him out there on Sunday against the "visiting" Jets.

*G Chris Snee suffered a knee injury and was scheduled to undergo an MRI. We'll know what the results are later in the week.

*CB Sam Madison suffered a bruised AC joint. No word if it's really separated or if Madison won't be able to start at quarterback this week. Seriously, he played through it last night, so I'd expect him to be back.

*Quote of the night went to Strahan, who faulted the Eagles for not helping Justice: "That poor kid they had over there, why didn't they help him? I'm 35; (Eagles right tackle Jon) Runyan's an All-Pro. Go help that young kid. You could ruin the guy in his first start. In Philadelphia, (if) the poor kid goes out and orders some food, they might do something to it."